Wire-stretcher.



No. 818,379. PATENTED APR. 1'7, 1906.

G. W. HOLMES. WIRE STRBTCHER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.5. 1906.

W/TNESSES:

By @fn l K A TTG/m7; xfs

GEORGE W. HOLMES, OF GREENFIELD, ILLINOIS.

WIRE-STRETCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

xatented April 17, 1906.

Application filed February 5,1906. Serial No. 299,582.

.To all whom, *Ik may concern;

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. HOLMES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Greenfield, in the county of Greene and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Wire-Stretcher, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to wire-stretchers, more particularly to devices of this class employed for stretching the strand-wires or fence-webbing of wire fences, and has for its object to improve the construction and increase the efliciency of devices of this character.

Iith these and other objects in view, which will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, as hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification and in which corresponding parts are denoted by like designating characters, is illustrated the preferred form of the embodiment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operation.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation, partly in section, of the improved device applied. Eig. 2 is a plan view in section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Eig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the locking members detached. Fig. 4 represents a section of a webbing of fencing, illustrating the manner of applying the improved device thereto.

The improved device comprises a standard Aconstructed of spaced sides 10 11 and provided with a laterally-extending foot 12 for bearing on the ground (indicated at 13) and with stay members 14 15, bolted at 16 17 between the sides 10 11 of the standard and bearing against a fence-post 18. Engaging the post 18 are clamp-hooks 23 24 and having sections of chains 25 26 extending from the free ends and adapted to be engaged by hooks 27 28, the latter pivoted at 29 30 to the stay members 14 15. By this means the stay members and connected standard are detachably coupled to the post, the coupling means being adjustable by setting the hooks 27 28 in the links of the chains 25 26, as will be obvious.

A straining-lever 31 is mounted to swing by a bolt 32 between the sides 10 11 of the standard and adjustable longitudinally of the standard by means of spaced apertures 33, into any opposite pair of which the bolt 32 may be disposed, or two or more of the levers may be coupled to the same standard, as hereinafter explained.

Movably connected at 34 to the lever 31 is a rod 35, terminating in a chain-engaging hook 36, for detachably engaging a flexible element, such as a chain 37, the terminal of the flexible element having a wire clamping or attaching device 38 of suitable form. The member 38 is designed to engage one of the strand-wires 39 of the fence, and when one strand has been sufficiently strained the lever is shifted to a new position and the next wire strained, as required.

Swinging from the standard is a holding member for engaging the chain 37 and rel taining the strain on the wire while the lever is being adjusted to a new position, and preferably formed from a rod 40, bent upon itself with the portion at the bend contracted and upturned, as at 41, to engage one of the links of the chain 37, while the terminals of the rod are connected to the standard preferably by the same bolt 32 that supported the lever 31. By this arrangement when the lever 31 is disposed in its highest position, as in full lines in Fig. 1, and the member 38 of the chain connected to the wire 39 the holding member 40 41 lies inoperatively over the chain, in position to engage one of the links of the chain by its upturned loop 41 when the lever has been operated and disposed in the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1, and thus hold the strain on the wire while the lever is returned to its upward position and the hook 36 connected to the chain at a new location. The lever is then again operated and the holding member again applied, and so on as long as necessary. rIhus any required strain may be applied to the wire within the range of the chain 37, and when the required tension is attained the wires are secured to the post 18 by staples or other means in the usual manner.

When the device is applied to the ordinary strand-wires of fences, the latter will be stretched one at a time by adjusting the lever 31 and its attachments and the holding member upon the standard to correspond to the location of the several strand-wires. When employed for stretching web fencing, the latter will be provided with suitable clamps, as at 42 in Fig. 4, and the chain 37 connected to the clamp members, as by eye- IOO reg

IIO

bolts 43 44 or other suitable means, and the lever 31 and holding members 40 41,0perated in the same manner as above described.

As before stated, two or more of the levers and a corresponding number of the holding members may be employed. upon the same standard to expedite the operation, and when employed to stretch webbing fence material two levers will preferably be employedone connected to each end of the clamping members 42; but as this would be merely a duplication of the levers and would require no structural change in the device it is not deemed necessary to illustrate the operation of the device when a plurality of levers are employed.

One great advantage of this structure is that the wires or webbing may be strained over the last or corner post of the line of fencing without requiring the erection of special supports or dummy77 posts to carry the stretching apparatus so common in prior devices of this character.

The lever 31 is provided with a stud 45, over which a hook 46, swinging from the standard, engages when the lever is depressed to hold it in that position when desired.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is- 1. A wire-stretching apparatus comprising` a standard for bearing on the ground and having spaced stays extending laterally thereform for bearing against a Vfence-post, means for detachably coupling said stay members to said post, a lever swinging from said standard, a flexible element connected at one end to said lever and with the other end ladapted to be detachably connected to the wire to be strained, and means for detachably connecting said flexible element to said standard7 to hold the strain on the wire while the lever is being adjusted to a new position.

2. A wire-stretching apparatus comprising a standard for bearing on the ground and having spaced stays extending laterally therefrom for bearing against a fence-post means for detachably coupling said stay members to said post a lever swinging from said standard, a flexible element connected at one end to said lever and with the other end adapted to be detachably connected to the wire to be strained, a gripping member movably connected to said standard and having means at the free end for detachably engaging said flexible element.

3. A wire-stretching apparatus comprising a standard for bearing upon the ground and formed with spaced sides, stays spaced apart and connected between said spaced sides and.

extending therefrom and adapted to bear against a fence-post, means for detachably coupling said stay members to said post, a lever pivoted to swing between said spaced sides, a 'fl exible element connected at one end to said lever and with the other end provided with wire-engaging means, a gripping member swinging at one end from said standard and provided with means at the free end for detachable engagement with said flexible element.

4. A wire-stretching apparatus comprising a standard, means for maintaining said standard spaced from a fence-post, a lever.

swinging from said standard, a flexible ele ment connected at one end to said lever and with means at the other end for detachably coupling to the wire. to be strained, and an arm swinging from said standard and terminating in an eye through which said flexible element movably extends, whereby the wire may be held in strained position while the lever is adjusted to a new position.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed mysignature in the presence of two Witnesses.

GEORGE W. HOLMES.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM B. BARNES, MAYO BARNES. 

